Godan

From the book blurb

Godan, a story of stark realism is Premchand’s most outstanding work. It is his last completed novel which brings out the realistic interpretation of Indian village society. This is a story of people, hungry and semi starved, yet hopeful and optimistic in the truest spirit of the age it represent.

Author

Written by Premchand in Hindi and translated by Jai Ratan & P. Lal into English.

What I think

The cover page is very simple. Its color is that of mud indirectly letting the reader know that it is about land, farmers and their plight. The book blurb is concise and

Some books like Godan are so critically acclaimed and accepted by people at large that there is so little to talk about the plot or its relevance. As an ardent fan of Premchand and as someone who has read most of his works in Hindi, I was excited when I came across Godan translated in English. I was happy that this would help Godan to reach out to a wider audience. I picked up the book with that end in my and I was not disappointed. The narrative and flow is really good. The language used is very simple and lucid.

Godan is a special book because it talks about various aspects that were relevant in the era whe it was written. It throws light on the plight of peasants, the pride of landlords, the discriminations based on caste, etc. In fact, the plight of farmers and the way they suffer due to huge debts is still a topic of concern. It also talks about the little dreams of farmers and its unfulfillments.

In short, Godan is a story that is significant even today. And, the translators have done a very brilliant job by presenting the brilliance of Premchand’s last book to the readers at large.

Relish it!

Rating

I do not want to rate the book for the plot and characters.

But for translation, I give 3.5/5 because it is a well-translated book!

Thank you

Jaico Publications for giving away the book for review.